S03.E03: Donald Trump

[OneWhoLurks]

A New Jersey high school teacher was forced to resign this month for showing his class a popular John Oliver clip that urged viewers to “Make Donald Drumpf Again.”

 

The “Last Week Tonight” bit, which lampoons presidential hopeful Donald Trump’s ancestral surname, has been viewed more than 24 million times on YouTube since February.

 

But despite the massive exposure, humorless Middletown South HS brass still pushed out teacher Joe Ventre after getting complaints from a thin-skinned parent who learned about the screening from her child, sources told The Post.

 

[...]

 

Students said Ventre adored his job and has been visibly distraught in recent weeks.

As word of the bizarre dispute began to spread, furious parents and students rallied to Ventre’s defense at a packed board meeting Wednesday night.

 

Arguing that administrators were acting more like Politburo hardliners than suburban school officials, speakers said Ventre was exercising free speech and had an otherwise impeccable record.

 

Emotional students urged the panel to reject his resignation. They plan to renew their protest at a meeting Tuesday.

 

 

http://nypost.com/2016/04/22/teacher-axed-for-showing-make-donald-drumpf-again-video/

 

ETA1:

 

A New Jersey teacher now says he won't quit after he was forced to resign when he showed his class a video critical of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

 

And the school district says it will take him back.

 

An online petition was started to save Joseph Ventre, a Middletown High School South history teacher, who forced to resign recently after at least one parent complained that he showed a video from HBO's "John Oliver's Last Week Tonight" that lampooned Trump, according to the petitioners.

 

 

http://patch.com/new-jersey/longbranch/s/fpmbl/update-monmouth-county-teacher-rescinds-resignation-over-anti-trump-video?utm_source=alert-breakingnews&utm_medium=email&utm_term=schools&utm_campaign=alert

 

ETA2:

 

A few weeks ago, “Last Week Tonight” host John Oliver urged his viewers to refer to Donald Trump as “Donald Drumpf,” a reference to Trump’s ancestral last name. Well, it seems John Kasich’s campaign has taken Oliver’s advice to heart.

 

A page on Kasich’s website touting his supposed electability compared to Mr. Trump repeatedly refers to the GOP front-runner as “Donald Drumpf”:

 

 

http://thepulse2016.com/danny-cannon/2016/04/21/15087/

Edited April 23, 2016 by OneWhoLurks

[OneWhoLurks]

Quote

 

MIDDLETOWN - A Middletown teacher says he's learned his lesson: No more "profane and inappropriate" Donald Trump-related video clips in class.

Joe Ventre, a social studies/history teacher at Middletown High School South, posted a letter online Monday night saying that he is ready to close the textbook on an incident that nearly cost him his job.

Ventre had been in hot water after at least one parent complained of his decision to show a popular clip from HBO's "Last Week Tonight" that mocked presidential candidate Donald Trump.

[...]

Ventre said showing that video was a lapse in judgment.

"I made a mistake by playing a profane and inappropriate video in my classroom, and am deeply sorry," he wrote in a letter addressed to "the Middletown community" and posted on Twitter. "I had no intention to cause any harm. It was entirely appropriate for parents or students to question the appropriateness of my judgment."

Ventre confirmed to the Asbury Park Press that he was the author of the letter. A parent told the Press that he said something similar to students at school on Monday.

 

Middletown teacher in Trump flap pens apology

[OneWhoLurks]

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I know I've written and said this before, but the adage "politics makes strange bedfellows" may be the most fitting way to concisely describe the 2016 presidential election. It's a solid, throw-your-hands-in-the-air, I-give-up-trying-to-make-sense-of-this-circus response for when the election throws another strange "frenemy" curve ball, like Ben Carson endorsing Donald Trump and the quasi-alliance between John Kasich and Ted Cruz emerges. But could it be that the conservative Texas senator may actually see a political ally in John Oliver's "Make Donald Drumpf Again" brigade?

Granted, "ally" is probably too strongly positive of a term, but it does seem that Cruz happily approves of Oliver's brainchild. While campaigning in Indiana, Cruz was presented with a "Make Donald Drumpf Again" hat. Styled to parody the Trump's signature "Make America Great Again" hats, the item came from Oliver's larger segment aimed at explaining why many Americans think of Donald Trump as successful when there's a steaming pile of evidence that he is not. At all.

Oliver concluded that part of this veneer of success came from the sound of Trump's name and reminded viewers that the original Trump family name is, in fact, Drumpf. Although the segment was clearly tongue-and-cheek, it had the more serious aim of derailing Trump's run. As the arguable conductor of the anti-Trump train, Cruz seems to be a fan of the hats, at least from this Indiana encounter. When asked to autograph the "Make Donald Drumpf Again" hat during a diner campaign stop, Cruz chuckled and said "Happy to," adding "Excellent. Thank you, sir."

 

Ted Cruz Makes Donald Drumpf Again In A Slyly Amusing Way

[OneWhoLurks]

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A company called Drumpf Industries, which Bloomberg claims is Oliver's doing, is attempting to register "Drumpf" — but the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office thinks the similarity to Trump's moniker might confuse consumers.

"Registration is refused because the applied-for mark consists of or comprises a name, portrait, or signature identifying a particular living individual whose written consent to register the mark is not of record," states the application file.

[...]

To clear this regulatory hurdle, Oliver will need permission from Trump himself.

"To overcome this particular refusal, the applicant must submit written consent from both parties," states a trademark examiner. "This written consent must include a statement of Mr. Trump’s consent to applicant’s registration of the identifying matter as a trademark, and not just the party’s consent to permit applicant to use the mark."

 

Hollywood Docket: Drumpf Trademark Hits Roadblock

[peeayebee]

Well, that's a shame.

[OneWhoLurks]

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As noted in previous blog posts, trademark applications that reference living people require consent. On May 05, 2016, the DRUMPF trademark application received an Office Action based on a 2(c) refusal for identifying a living person. As evidence of DRUMPF’s relationship to Donald Trump, the USPTO cited several news articles from The Boston Globe, Time, and The New York Times reporting on the John Oliver segment, which predictably associated the DRUMPF mark with Donald Trump. The USPTO concluded, “DRUMPF is a reference to Mr. Trump. Therefore, the general public would readily associate the applied-for mark, DRUMPF, with Donald Trump.” Unless Drumpf Industries obtains Donald Trump’s consent within 6 months, the application will be denied.

But not all hope is lost for John Oliver and the DRUMPF mark. Trademark rights can apply at common law, without federal registration. Common law trademark rights, however, are only conferred within the certain territory that the mark is used in. Currently, the DRUMPF mark is being used rather broadly—the website donaldjdrumpf.com prominently features the “Make Donald Drumpf Again” slogan and customers can buy “Make Donald Drumpf Again” hats on hbo.com. The DRUMPF-branded hats are reportedly so popular, that HBO has been able to drop the price from $17.50 to $15.00, and still only charge “at-cost” value. Even without the benefit of federal registration, DRUMPF has managed to become a well-known source identifier with a thriving customer base. And most importantly for John Oliver, Donald Trump’s relationship to DRUMPF has been expressly affirmed by the USPTO.

 

Drumpf or Trump: The Name Confirmed

[OneWhoLurks]

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Following The Last Week Tonight host's infamous Donald Trump premiere episode in late February, the show has sold more than 50,000 "Make Donald Drumpf Again" hats from its online store, a rep for the premium cabler tells The Hollywood Reporter.

[...]

There are two versions of the "Drumpf" hat: a red one, which has sold 36,000, and a blue version, which has sold 17,000, the HBO rep stated in response to a query.

 

'Last Week Tonight' Has Sold More Than 50,000 "Drumpf" Hats

[Lantern7]

Thinking of this episode: If you check out Epic Rap Battles' take on the upcoming election, you'll notice "Hillary" wearing a "Make Donald Drumpf Again" cap at the 0:34 mark.